1x01 New girl in the building (The Building Series)
by Castlestar4
Summary: Treat this as the first episode of a TV show. It's an introduction but a storyline will pick up. In this AU the gang live in the same building and Skye has just moved in. This series will mainly contain Fitz, Jemma, Skye, Coulson, May, Radcliffe, Yo-yo, Hunter, Ward, Trip, Bobbi. And yes, I did get the idea from FRIENDS. 1x02 Twister - out now.
1. Fitz didn't like change

Fitz had never liked change and this was no exception. He was trying to tell Simmons that he didn't want to have new person living next door but she wouldn't listen.

"Ugh! Fitz! Can't you just accept the fact that we're going to have a new neighbor. They might be nice."

"Or awful." Fitz never looked on the positive side if there was any change involved.

"Come on. " Simmons persisted, "You always said you never liked Victoria Hand anyway."

"That's true; she was annoying. Maybe whoever they are _will_ be alright." In truth he was only giving in because he really just wanted them to stop arguing. They had beenbickering continuously since they left work. It had been a particularly hard day at their company 'Fitz-Simmons' (not the most inventive name!) and they were both tired. It would be easier to just accept the new neighbour and go straight back to their shared apartment on the 2nd floor. (It went ground floor, Coulson's floor (It wasn't really his floor but he had been there the longest, so Fitz called it that) and then theirs.) They just finished going up all the stairs when he heard a sneeze. He grabbed Simmons arm and dragged her back down a few steps.

"What?" She said, in an annoyed whisper.

"Did you hear that?" Fitz whispered, panicked.

"The sneeze?" Said Simmons, sounding mildly annoyed. She changed her tone to one of mock panic. "Yes I did and whatever are we going to do about it?"

"Sh!" He tried to silence her, flapping his arms about like a peguin trying to fly. "The new one's here…" He said, in an overly dramatic tone.

"Oh quit your whining!" She whispered and then, in a sudden unexpected movement, she darted around Fitz and called out: "Hey!"

Fitz cursed her under his breath but did follow her round the corner.

A young woman was unpacking seen through an open door. She looked around her early twenties, and at Simmons' shout she had looked up.

"Hey." She said, mildly.

Fitz thought she looked beautiful and tried desperately to keep his cool. Simmons found it a lot easier.

"Hey I'm Jemma Simmons and this is Fitz," Fitz managed a weak smile and nod, "We live next door." The girl's face looked shocked.

"Fitz…" She stared hard at Fitz as though trying to work out something. Fitz shifted uncomfortably uner her gaze. "...and Simmons. I may be taking a huge leap here but… do you two happen to be the CEOs of Fitz-Simmons?"

"We just so happen to be - yes we are!" Jemma let out a tentative laugh.

"No way! I-" Skye looked very excited, " I've been following your company for ages! Always wanted a job there. Some of your designs are incredible and I'm starting in the computing division on Monday."

"That's fantastic!" Said Simmons, enthusiastically. "I run bio-chem, Fitz does tech so you'll be working with him. Fitz-" Simmons looked at Fitz and gave him a large elbow in the shoulder. It seemed to wake him up.

"Errrr, yeah… yeah I'll… I'll be your boss." Skye stifled a giggle and glanced at Simmons, who rolled her eyes.

"So you two live together? Are you a couple cos, I got to say, if you are you're doing an excellent job of hiding it from the media and-"

"No!" Fitz interrupted her, more confidently and loudly than intended. He lowered his voice to a normal speaking level. "We aren't…" He looked nervously from Skye to Simmons.

"What he means to say is we've been best of friends since university but no, we are not a couple."

Skye looked slightly disappointed, "Oh! Shame, you two look made for each other." Fitz and Simmons gave each other an awkward look but, to be fair, it wasn't the first time they had been told that; everyone said it. "Hey I know the place isn't ready yet but would you like to come in? I'll order some Chinese, we can hang out-"

This was the sort of social situation Fitz didn't enjoy. Dinner? With a stranger? He interrupted, "Er… actually I think… I mean we have… we have stuff to do." He turned to go into their apartment but Simmons grabbed him.

"That sounds lovely." She smiled, "Doesn't it, Fitz?"

Fitz looked at Simmons with plea in his eyes but she looked at him with that defiant look she often had when forcing Fitz into uncomfortable social situations (like when she first made him go down to the boiler room). "But we can do the work tomorrow I guess." Fitz sighed and Simmons let go of his arm.

This time Skye couldn't help but laugh out loud as she led them around the boxes to her sofa at the centre of the apartment.


	2. The man upstairs

The Chinese arrived half and hour later and by then Fitz was feeling slightly more comfortable with Skye. They had been chatting for a while and she seemed genuinely really nice (not to mention very good with computers). She was an orphan, rough childhood, but made something good out of what she had. Mostly it was Skye who talked, but Fitz wasn't complaining, he found it easier to listen than to talk.

The trio had only just begun to tuck into their Chinese food when Skye told an incredibly hilarious story about a carer from one of her orphanages who didn't understand computers. Fitz and Simmons couldn't help but laugh so loud that, had they been in their apartment, they would have hear it. Unfortunately this meant that the sound went up through the ceiling too.

"I thought I told you to be quiet when I'm working!" It was a deep male voice with a Scottish accent, like Fitz, and it was so angry that for a minute Skye wondered if it was a giant living in the clouds.

"Sorry, Mr Radcliffe!" Simmons shouted, sounded almost scared. Skye raised her eyebrows at Simmons who shook her head and mouthed 'not now'.

"Dr Radcliffe!" He corrected her from above.

"I try to tell her!" Fitz shouted up. Skye noticed that Fitz seemed much more relaxed with this interruption than Simmons did. "We'll go back to our apartment if you're working."

"Thank you, my boy!" Radcliffe still sounded annoyed but also sincere, it was rather strange.

Fitz picked up his food and left instantly. Simmons picked up hers so Skye decided she should follow suit.

They settled back down around Fitz and simmons' coffee table. After a minute or two of silence Skye couldn't take the mystery. "So who was that!? Did I move in under the Troll's bridge or something?"

Simmons chuckled, "Pretty much."

"Hey, don't be so harsh on him." Fitz urged.

"So is he your Dad or something?" Skye was still confused. Jemma and Fitz looked at her like she had said the most unimaginably thing in the world.

"No, just… just a fellow Scotsman." Fitz and Jemma looked at each other in utter shock and then rolled their eyes in unison.

"Hey, I can see you!" She was trying to be annoyed but it was actually quite funny, these two were almost psychically linked. How come they weren't a couple?

"Yes a fellow Scotsman," Jemma said, Skye could tell by her tone she leading up to chastising him about something. "And if he were American I bet you wouldn't treat him half as well as you do."

"Am I supposed to read into that?" Skye said. But Fitz and Simmons were having their own little bicker now so Skye contented herself with digging into her Chinese noodles. Yum, seaweed!

"Maybe, but why should that matter. Once you get to know him he's alright. Plus he's an incredible engineer."

"Well if we liked all the genius in the world our friends list would not look very inviting. Besides, if you're always talking rubbish about May then why can't I do the same for your friends."

"Now that's not fair! May is a scary woman, she's intimidating."

"If you got to know her better, then maybe you wouldn't feel that way."

"You know the only reason I put up with May is to spend time with you and Phil."  
"And you know the only reason anyone ever puts up with Radcliffe is to spend time with you."

There was clicking at the lock and Skye looked, slightly worried, at Fitz and Simmons but they just shrugged.

"I assume you know someone else who has a key." Fitz and SImmons didn't have to answer though as, at that moment, the door swung open and Phil Coulson came into the room.

"Personally I don't see any reason why we put up with Grant Ward next door."

"I would say because we don't want him to knock us out based on what is job is," said Simmons, smiling at her own joke.

"You know, Phil, we only gave you a key for emergencies." said Fitz, trying and failing to sound serious.

"Wait! So what does this Ward who lives next door to you do then?" Skye asked Phil.

"He's a personal trainer… and also a self defense class teacher," said Phil, "That's the part I'm most worried about."

"Yikes!" said Skye, raising her eyebrows at Simmons and Fitz as she turned back towards the table to continue her meal.


	3. Milk!

After Skye had told Phil she had moved in next door to Fitz and Simmons he was pleased to announce that he lived directly below her, along with Melinda May that was.

"Hold up!" Said Skye, after finding out this extraordinary piece of information, "You live with this incredibly intimidating woman that Fitz described?" Skye glanced over at Fitz who burnt red and suddenly looked very interested in his noodles.

"I know what you're thinking," said Phil, smiling mischievously at Skye, "But no we are not together."

Skye looked as disappointed as she had when Fitz and Simmons had told her they were not a couple. "This building is dull. Is there even one couple living in this building?" Phil nodded and indicated Fitz and Simmons on the other side of the table. Fitz and Simmons were giving Phil the hardest glare they could muster and Skye was outraged.

"But they…. They told me that-" After staring at Fitz and Simmons for a few seconds she looked back at Phil who she could tell was holding back laughter. "You!" She cried and gave him a playful shove. Phil burst out laughing but then said:

"No joke. They may not be romantically a couple but they are _definitely_ a pair. I mean; FitzSimmons? Can two names be more perfect for each other?"

"They cannot!" Agreed Skye, enjoying making Fitz and Simmons feel uncomfortable.

"So…" said Skye, after she and Phil had calmed down, "Who else lives in this building?"

Simmons answered, "Well there are only two floors above this one, Radcliffe is above you, you met him," Skye pulled a face and rolled her eyes, "Above us is Trip, he's really sweet."

"And top floor?" Questioned Skye.

"Bobbi and Hunter." said Fitz

"Not a couple?"  
"Not a couple." Confirmed Phil.

In that moment the door opened again. ("How many people have your key?" mocked Skye) and an Asian woman about Phil's age came in.

"Hey," she said, almost too casually, "This the new girl?"

Skye looked at Fitz, who nodded somewhat discreetly. So this was the intimidating Melinda May, Skye could see what Fitz meant but also what Simmons menat. "Yep, that's me." Skye replied. Before making any 'welcome to the building remarks' May looked directly at Phil.

"You left a note on the kitchen counter, did you get the milk or not?"

"Oh right," said Phil, smiling, completely the opposite of what May was doing, Skye raised her eyebrows at Simmons but when Skye glanced back towards the door she noticed May was watching her and quickly pretended to be very hungry and eat her seaweed.

"FitzSimmons, any milk?" Asked Phil. Simmons got up and checked the fridge.

"Believe or not we actually don't have any milk." She smiled and then her friendly tone went as she noticed a guilty looking Fitz. "Fitz!" She moaned.

"Sorry," he mumbled, "Had a cup of tea with my porridge this morning. Forgot to mention that I used up all the milk."

"Oatmeal." whispered Phil, playfully annoyed.

"Porridge," whispered Fitz back.

"Let's go get some from Trip." Simmons concluded.

After visiting Trip Skye decided that he looked very handsome indeed. He also seemed to have more common sense than May, Phil or FitzSimmons (Phil was rubbing off on her) as he had three bottles of milk in his fridge one of which he was happy to give them. Simmons invited him back down to their apartment. By now Skye had deciphered that FitzSimmons' apartment was where most of the 'hanging out' took place and that everyone in the building had a key to their apartment, which was proven when Lance Hunter burst into the room whilst they were chatting and everyone sighed deeply. When Skye questioned FitzSimmons about the safety issues of everyone having a key to their apartment Simmons was quick to assure her that Radcliffe would never, ever get a key to their apartment and, therefore, there was no need to be worried.

Skye didn't like to judge people before she met them but Radcliffe sounded like the dodgy type and someone to avoid.

But apart from that, this building seemed to be full of lovely people who all knew each other very well. Her time here was going to be fun…


	4. The coffee shop

Skye was returning from buying the essentials from the local store when she spotted a coffee shop that she hadn't seen on her way out, which was strange because it was right outside her building. She decided to go in and grab a drink.

When she entered the coffee shop she immediately felt at home. It was that sort of place that just seemed full of smiling, happy faces. She spotted a few familiar faces around a table by the window so she headed over to join them.

"Mind if I join you?" She asked, once she reached the table where Coulson, May, Hunter and a woman who she could only assume was Bobbi sat.

"Not at all." Said Coulson, happily.

"So, you're Skye?" Bobbi questioned, as Skye pulled up a chair.

"Yeah... Do I know you?"

"No but they've been talking about you."

"Have you now?" Skye asked, trying to hide how surprised she was as she looked at Coulson, May and Hunter.

"Don't look at me!" Hunter said, with a stupid grin on his face.

"What are you talking about?" Coulson asked, with a mischievous smile on his face, "You've been talking about her the most."

"And I've got to say," Bobbi said, in the most serious tone she could muster, "I understand why you keep calling her hot!"

Skye raised her eyebrows at Hunter who shrugged and said, "Hope that won't make things awkward between us, sweetheart."

"Don't call me sweetheart." Skye said. Hunter was saved from having to come up with a snide remark to this as the waitress came over, having spotted Skye had just turned up.

"Can I get you anything?" She asked looking at Skye. She had a Spanish sounding accent and her name tag read Elena.

"A coffee would be nice, please." She said and Elena left the table.

"So what do you all do for a living?" Skye asked turning back to the table.

"She's hot isn't she?" Hunter said, staring at Elena as she left.

"Ugh! Do you just say that about anyone?" Skye asked, slightly outraged.

"Pretty much." Bobbi answered.

"Awwww!" Hunter said, in a tone of mock comfort, "Did you think you were special, sweetheart?"

That was when Elena came back with a coffee in her hand.

"That was quick!" Skye exclaimed as she took the coffee. "You will always be my waitress!"She smiled and said, "Well if you're with them then you will because I'm always theirs. We have a deal." And with that she left Skye who turned to look at the others who smiled.

"Only the best will serve us." May spoke for the first time.

Skye moved on. "What exactly _do_ you do?" Skye asked Hunter.

"I act." He said, very overconfident.

"I see." Skye said, smiling, "You're clearly very busy, you're on set right now!" She finished, sarcastically. Hunter shook his head in disbelief and gave her a cold stare that wasn't helped by the fact that he was trying to contain laughter. "And the rest of you?" She asked, looking away from Hunter's intense stare.

"Well I'm a lawyer," Coulson said, very calmly. Skye was impressed.

"That's amazing!" Skye said, "Far more impressive than a failed actor." She said glancing back at Hunter, who stuck his tongue out at her.

"I'm the head chef at 'year to go'." May said.

"Well I'll be coming to yours for dinner, I'm hopeless at cooking!" Skye said, surprised that such an intimidating woman was the head chef. She wouldn't like to work in that kitchen. "What kind of name is 'year to go' anyway?" Skye asked.

"I didn't name it." May said, calmly. Skye decided that if she wanted a conversation May was not the person to go to.

"I teach languages at Astridge High School." Bobbi smiled.

"Also extremely impressive," Skye was starting to feel like she would be living in the shadow of greatness for a while; all she had was a small job at Fitz-Simmons. "What languages do you speak?"

"Russian, Mandarin, Spanish, French among others." She said casually. Skye raised her eyebrows, she'd never been any good at languages when she was at school.

"I should probably go." she said, standing up and picking up her shopping, "I have milk in here that needs to get in the fridge. Let me know if you need any Coulson! Nice to meet you Bobbi." She smiled as she left the coffee shop for the first time of many.


End file.
